From Media Day until opening night, NBA.com’s John Schuhmann will provide a key stat for each team in the league and show you, with film and analysis, why it matters. Up next is the Sacramento Kings, who showed some signs of life (at least on one end of the floor) in the second half of last season.

The basics

SAC

Rank

W-L

28-54

25

Pace

96.3

7

OffRtg

103.0

13

DefRtg

108.6

29

NetRtg

-5.6

26

The stat

6.6 – More points per 100 possessions the Kings scored after the All-Star break (107.3) than they scored before it (100.7), the biggest improvement in the league.

Two other stats are important. First, the Kings went from 10th in pace (95.2 possessions per 48 minutes) before the break to No. 1 in pace (98.5) after it. And that increase clearly suited them better. They played better both offensively and defensively in their fastest-paced games last season.

Secondly, the Kings increased their assist rate (AST/FGM) from 54.0 percent to 57.7 percent. That’s not a huge increase and, league-wide, there’s no correlation between assist rate and offensive efficiency. But it’s certainly notable when it’s the Kings, who have ranked in the bottom five in assist rate each of the last six seasons.

The highlight of the Kings’ second half was a 116-101 win over the Clippers on March 19, in which they assisted on 25 (68 percent) of their 37 baskets. Watch how, on seven of the 14 threes they hit that night, guys made an extra pass for a better shot…

Your browser does not support iframes.

Hockey assists galore. If their uniforms were white and black instead of white and purple, you might think that was the Spurs. The Kings have had some decent offensive talent, guys that can hurt a decent defense, over the years. But they’ve never really worked together or made the most of what they had.

In that Clippers game, guys were looking for each other. The ball sought the open man and it didn’t stop until it found him.

Marcus Thornton led them with 25 points in that game and was their most improved shooter after the break. His effective field-goal percentage went from 48.3 percent before the break to 57.4 percent after it. Isiah Thomas, DeMarcus Cousins and Tyreke Evans also improved their shooting and efficiency.

Cousins went from having only 43 percent of his baskets assisted before the break to having 60 percent of them assisted after. If he can permanently cut down on the face-up isos, he might start living up to his potential.

Of course, the Kings made big changes this summer. Evans is gone and Greivis Vasquez – a real point guard – is in his place. Mike Malone is the new coach and brings with him a new system. He’d be justified to start from scratch with this team. But he also might want to show them how good they can be when the ball moves.